A slice of history: My grandfather’s 1939 school journal

My grandfather’s drawing of what seems to be WWI-era Germany. Also note the penultimate note: “Hitler is a common dictator.”

My mother went through my deceased grandmother’s belongings yesterday, as she is one of the two executors of her estate. Among the several books she found my grandfather’s school notes, apparently from 1939, when he would have been either a sophomore or junior (he was born in March 1923 and these clippings seem to be from just before the German occupation of the rest of Czechoslovakia, so 16 years later). In them, there were a few notes on Germany, past and present (and other European and Asian nations), as well as newspaper clippings from the same time period.

Interesting to see how close things were to war between Germany and the Soviet Union during the spring/summer of 1939 after the annexation of Czechoslovakia.

For those that are fascinated by contemporary sources, here are the clippings that were found inside the journal. Note the problems Rumania/Romania was having due to claims from Hungary and others (an issue decided by the ceding of land to Hungary through German mediation), as well as the facts of the day and the Polish refusal regarding Danzig.

More clippings from mid-1939. Interesting in hindsight, no?

Just thought this might be a neat slice of history for those who are interested in it, especially when it comes to families preserving these clippings over two generations.